The One Who Got Away
by Carrina Carnarvon
Summary: Final chapter now up! Who will Rachel choose?--Ross and Phoebe hatch a plan to break up Joey and Rachel, Monica and Chandler have a baby, she goes crazy over names, and will Joey end up proposing after the 'Ross disaster'? Please R&R!!
1. The One Who Got Away

I got an idea for an opening to a story when I was at school, really bored, duh! I thought I'd post it so review and tell me what you think!!! (  
  
Ross hated the fact that Rachel was with Joey. He had hated every minute of his life ever since the two got together. Ross especially disliked the fact that Emma, his own daughter, spent more time with Joey than with himself. Ever since Rachel and Joey had gotten together, his and Ross' friendship and disintegrated into nothing. Sure, Joey tried to be nice, but Ross just acted terribly to him. Whenever Ross went over to pick up Emma, he completely ignored Joey's existence. More than anything in the world, Ross wanted to get Rachel back. He wasn't sure exactly how, but he would. It made his life a living hell knowing that he, Ross, the man who had loved her through thick and thin, for most of his life, he who had had a daughter with Rachel, had lost his one true love to a stupid bonehead pretty-boy.  
  
Ross was headed for Monica's. He had been going over to his sister's an awful lot lately, but he didn't know what else to do with his time.  
  
"Hey, Mon," Ross greets, entering the apartment.  
  
"Oh. Hi Ross. You're here, again?" Monica says sounding annoyed.  
  
"Yep. Just thought I'd visit my favourite sister!" Ross says, cheerily.  
  
"You've been visiting a lot lately, don't you think?" questions Monica. She was quite irritated with Ross lately, he was visiting her every constant, waking moment. She and Chandler were trying to get pregnant, and Ross wasn't helping the process.  
  
"Yeah, I know. Is that a problem?"  
  
"Yes," she says under her breath. Seeing the look on Ross' face, she quickly says,  
  
"No. Of course not."  
  
Rachel and Joey were a very happy couple. They had been since that fateful night, almost six months ago. (They had been still living together, and then one night, Rachel comes home upset because her date had stood her up. Joey was there to comfort her, and one thing led to another, and they kissed.) Rachel thought of it has the most romantic night of her life, and often told people the story, but left out the fact that she had been stood up. It was less than a week until their 6-month anniversary, and Joey was frantically looking for a gift.  
  
"Phoebe," says Joey, sitting down next to her at the coffee house," Mine and Rachel's anniversary is coming up, and I was wondering, do you have any gift ideas?"  
  
"Nope." Phoebe replies, bluntly. Phoebe really resented the fact that Joey was with Rachel, and not her, which was, of course, how it was supposed to work out.  
  
"Ok," says Joey, not believing how cynical she could be.  
  
Joey rushed out of the coffee house; he HAD to find a gift for Rachel. And it had to be a good one, one that says, "I love you" and "I'm so happy to have you". At first, he thought one of his coupons for an hour of 'Joey love' would be good, until he remembered how she had reacted to that on her birthday.  
  
Walking by a bridal store, a sudden idea hit Joey. He knew what he would get her-and it said all the things he wanted it to, and more. He would propose to Rachel. Sure, they had only been together for six months, but why wait? He loved her, she loved him, and he had spent the happiest days of his life with her. It was the perfect idea, and now he could not wait for Saturday to come. Making sure he had his credit card with him, Joey catches a cab to the jewelry store.  
  
Ross is alone in his apartment, watching TV and sipping a Coke. Phoebe walks in, looking mad.  
  
"Hey Ross. Ugh, don't you just hate that Rachel and Joey are together?!?" she exclaims, angrily.  
  
"Thank you! Yeah, I really do. She shouldn't be with him, she should be with me," replies Ross.  
  
"I know. And he shouldn't be with her he should be with me. (Thinking) You know, we could do something about our little...problem."  
  
"What do you mean?" asks Ross, sounding intrigued.  
  
"Ok, what if we were to break them up, which would make them upset, so they would seek comfort in our arms. You see? 1-2-3, and we've got what we want!"  
  
"Pheebs, that's terrible. Brilliant, though. But I wouldn't feel comfortable breaking them up," he says.  
  
"Well technically, they shouldn't be together. We know that, they just don't. And we wouldn't be making them unhappy, because they'll have us!" convinces Phoebe.  
  
"Well.(Thinking about it) Ok," says Ross, hesitating, "So how do we do it?"  
  
"I have absolutely NO idea!" she exclaims, laughing.  
  
Chandler and Monica walk out of their room, having just had sex.  
  
"I think we did it this time," says Monica," I can really feel it!"  
  
"Me too. You have any pregnancy tests?" Chandler asks.  
  
"I think. Let me check." Monica excitedly runs to the bathroom, and comes back empty handed, "Nope. I'm all out," she says, disappointed.  
  
"Ok you stay here, I'll run to the pharmacy and pick some up," he says.  
  
"Honey, do you really want to be seen buying pregnancy tests?"  
  
"Come on, Mon. I've grown up a lot, you know. I'm not going to care what people think, because they won't. (Hesitates) Yeah, you go get them."  
  
Monica smiles and quickly leaves. She soon comes back with a bag containing the tests.  
  
"I got them!"  
  
Not waiting for Chandler's reply, she walks to the bathroom, anticipating what might happen. She takes the test and waits for the results, the suspense is killing her. Chandler walks in just as it's ready.  
  
Monica looks down at the little stick, and says  
  
"It's...."  
  
END! It's over!!! Ha, ha, cliffhangers are the best..at least when I know what's going to happen. I hope you liked the story, so review it and tell me what you think, Ok? Otherwise, it's just mean! Did you see Friends last night? (April 24th) It was so sad at the end, where Rachel wanted to kiss Joey, but he was with that other girl. I didn't cry, but still, it was so sad, and I felt so bad. Hey, I rhymed. Ok, I'm just babbling now, so I'm going to stop..right after I tell you to REVIEW my STORY!!!!!!!! ( If u like it, the next chapter will be up soon, no more than a week, I promise. 


	2. Babies, Rings & Evil Plans

Yay! It's chapter two!! Aren't you just so excited?!? :-)  
  
Monica looked down at the little stick and says,  
  
"It's.negative." She looks up at Chandler crying, she had really thought they had done it this time.  
  
"Mon, it's Ok. You'll get pregnant, I promise," says Chandler.  
  
"Yeah, but what if I don't?" she asks, upset.  
  
"Of course you will. If worse comes to worse, and we never do get pregnant-which won't happen-we'll adopt or something, but I promise you, we will have a baby," he replies.  
  
"Thanks."  
  
"Mon," says Chandler, getting an idea," Why don't you take the test again? You never know, it could have been wrong the first time."  
  
"Ok!" says Monica, perking up. She grabs two tests and pushes Chandler out of the bathroom. About five minutes later, she runs out of the bathroom screaming,  
  
"They're positive!!! Both of them!!! I'm going to have a BABY!!!!"  
  
Tears of joy are streaming down her face as Chandler envelopes her in a big hug. She was right; they had done it.  
  
"I'm so happy for us," he says," I couldn't be more ready for this baby."  
  
They both have huge smiles on their faces, and couldn't possibly be happier. Monica sits on the couch, happily anticipating the future with her, Chandler and the new baby. It was going to be so great.  
  
"Chandler!" Mon exclaims, happily," Let's go baby shopping!"  
  
Joey had been wracking his brain trying to think of the best way to propose to Rachel. He didn't want to have this huge, long mushy speech, just something short and sweet. The whole night was going to be perfect-he had made reservations at a really fancy, expensive restaurant, and then planned to take her dancing, which was something he hated, but she loved. Sitting on his bed for 2 long hours, he finally came up with something to say to Rachel:  
  
Rachel, I love you a lot. These past months, you have made me so happy, and I want to spend my life with you, and make you just as happy. Rachel Green, will you marry me?  
  
Sure, it wasn't perfect, but it came from his heart, and that's what really mattered. The previous day, Joey had bought Rachel a really nice ring. It had also made a pretty nice dip into his savings, but he figured it was worth it if it was for Rachel. Joey checked his watch; it was 4:00 and Rachel should be home from work soon.  
  
"Joey? Are you home?" shouts Rachel.  
  
"Yeah! I'm in the bedroom," replies Joey.  
  
"Oh, Ok. I'm just going to go pick up Emma from Ross' so I'm guessing you want to stay here," she says, entering the bedroom.  
  
"Yeah," he answers, quickly. Joey didn't like to speak or think of Ross much; the stupid geek was acting crazy ever since he started dating Rachel.  
  
"Ok. I'll see you soon," Rachel says, leaving the apartment.  
  
Joey watched his (hopefully) future bride walk out the door, thinking how much he loved her, and how much he would hate it if Ross ever got her back.  
  
"Nah," he thinks, "That'll never happen!"  
  
Ross and Phoebe were in his apartment, still plotting against Rachel and Joey. As bad as it sounds, they were having a blast, and had never been closer.  
  
"Pheebs, we've been at this for like, a long time, and we've still had no good ideas," complains Ross.  
  
"Calm down, we'll get one. And you know, I had a great idea, but *somebody* shot it down," Phoebe replies.  
  
"Phoebe, 'Let's go buy donuts' is not a great idea! It has nothing to do with what we're trying to do!"  
  
Ross decides he wants a beer, and asks Phoebe if she wants one. Nodding her head yes, Ross heads to the kitchen to get the beverages. Coming back, he looks excited and says,  
  
"I've got it! I know how we're going to break up Rachel and Joey!"  
  
"How? How? How are we gonna do it?" Phoebe asks, really excited.  
  
"Well, Monica tells me that Joey's taking Rachel out to a really fancy restaurant on their anniversary. So, we rent a limo, trick him into thinking it's a real company, and instead of taking them to the restaurant, we drive them to.a strip club!" exclaims Ross.  
  
"Ross, that's crazy. Crazy brilliant!"  
  
"Yeah, so then Rachel gets mad at Joey for taking her to a strip joint on their anniversary, they eventually break up, and it all happens on their anniversary, making it even worse!"  
  
"Wow, that's good. You're really smart Ross."  
  
"I know. (Pauses) Pheebs, we are terrible people."  
  
"Yeah, terribly smart people!" she replies.  
  
Monica had finally convinced Chandler to come baby shopping. He figured if he went, she'd lay off the idea for a while, especially when she saw the prices of all the stuff. They take a cab to the store, which is fairly empty, making Monica even happier.  
  
"Ok, Chandler, I've made a list of everything that we need," says Mon, as she pulls out a list from her purse. She holds on to the top and this list tumbles down to the floor.  
  
"We need *that* much stuff?" Chandler asks, astounded.  
  
"Yeah we do. This list has everything we'll need for the baby for the first year, and this," she says, pulling out an even longer list," Will last us for the first two years."  
  
"Lets go with the first list. (Pauses) The first year? This is your first day of pregnancy!"  
  
"Yes, exactly what an irresponsible person would think. I don't want to be rushing around when I'm nine months pregnant.like Rachel, I am going to be ready."  
  
Chandler rolls his eyes, and makes a sarcastic face. When he sees the reaction on his wife's face, he quickly starts looking at baby clothes. Four long hours later, Monica and Chandler had every single thing they would need for their child's first year of life.  
  
"Where are we going to put it all?" asks Chandler.  
  
Totally ignoring Chandler's comment, Monica plops down on the couch, and pulls out her copy of "The Big Book of Children's Names".  
  
"Names? Already? We don't even know if it's going to be a boy or a girl."  
  
"It's going to be a girl. Definitely "  
  
"How do you know?!?" asks Chandler, in that Chandler way.  
  
"What do you think of the name Samantha? I've always liked that name," she says.  
  
"It's nice.except I lost my virginity to a girl named Samantha Carter."  
  
"Ok, definitely not!" Monica exclaims, leafing through the book.  
  
The day of Joey and Rachel's anniversary had finally come. At 5:00 sharp, the limo showed up outside the building. Surprisingly, Joey had managed to find a limousine company that had really low prices.  
  
"Rach, it's time to go!" says Joey.  
  
"Coming!"  
  
She walks out of her bedroom, and looks absolutely gorgeous in a stunning black off-the-shoulder dress.  
  
"Wow," he says, under his breath.  
  
Getting into the limo, Joey says,  
  
"Hi driver! I'm Joey. This is Rachel."  
  
"Hello, Joey and Rachel. You can call me.Bond. James Bond," says the driver (Ross).  
  
The voice sounds strangely familiar to Joey, but he can't seem to place it. Shrugging it off, he turns all his attention to Rachel, and making sure the ring is safely in his pocket, he leans over and kisses her.  
  
"Oh," says the driver," There's no kissing in this car!"  
  
Okey dokey, that's all for now. Personally, I really liked this chapter and thought it was funny. Review it and tell me what you think, ok? Please, please do. (Please do? Ha, I sound funny). If you liked it, tell me, and I'll post the next chapter soon, promise it won't be more than like, three or four days. Ok. I'll stop talking. REVIEW MY STORY PLEASE!!!! :-) 


	3. Chapter 3: The Big Night

Hooray, it's chapter 3!!!! Review and tell me what you think!  
  
For the past two hours Monica had been flipping through The Big Book of Children's Names, and creating a list of 'Yes,' 'No,' and 'Maybe.'  
  
"Monica, come to bed!" calls Chandler.  
  
"I can't, I'm busy!" she calls back.  
  
"Honey, you've been pregnant less than a week, there's no need to worry about names."  
  
"But.but.the list, the system, I'll mess it up if I leave!"  
  
"Ok, work for one more hour. Only one, then come to bed, now that you're pregnant, you need sleep."  
  
"Ok," says Monica.  
  
Two hours later.  
  
"Monica, it is midnight! Deal with the names tomorrow!" scolds Chandler.  
  
"Ok, fine. But if our child ends up being named Dora or Kenneth, I'm blaming you!" retorts Monica.  
  
"Fine, I'll take the full blame. Now GO to BED!"  
  
Monica finally gets into bed, and sleeps restlessly the whole night, worrying about their unborn child's name.  
  
Ross, disguised as 'Russ the Limo Driver' had been driving Joey and Rachel around for not to long when they reached the destination-the "Hot, Hot, Hot!" strip club. Ross carefully pulls his hat down over his face, and gets out to open the door for the couple. Joey's happy face instantly turns to disgust when he realizes where they are.  
  
"Hey! Driver! This isn't the restaurant! What's wrong with you?"  
  
Rachel comes out and has an equally disgusted look on her face.  
  
"Joey? Why are we at a strip club? For our anniversary?"  
  
Ross quietly chuckles; his plan was working.  
  
"Rach, I am telling you, this is NOT where I was planning on taking you!" Joey exclaims.  
  
"Well, then why are we here?" questions Rachel.  
  
"Why don't we ask the gentleman?" says Ross, a little too loudly.  
  
"Huh?" says Rachel," You keep out of this."  
  
Rachel's disgusted look quickly turns to a frown, and then a puzzled one. That drivers voice sounded eerily familiar, and what she could see of him seemed too well known for her liking.  
  
"Have we met before?" Rachel asks the driver (Ross).  
  
"Nnoo!" he exclaims.  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"I think I'd remember if I met you!" he flirts.  
  
"Hey! You back off!" Joey says, getting protective," You know, you seem a little familiar also."  
  
Joey steps over to the driver, and snatches his hat off.  
  
"Ross!" he exclaims.  
  
"Ross?! What the heck are you doing?" screams Rachel, mad.  
  
Ross' face turns beet red, and looking scared, he takes off running down the street. Joey takes no time in chasing after him, yelling,  
  
"You get back here, you anniversary wrecker!"  
  
Waiting for Joey to come back, Rachel takes a seat on a near by bench. Why would Ross do that, she thinks. Does he still love me? Why would he try and ruin my anniversary? Rachel just figured that he was trying to hurt Joey, in some way, and eventually Joey came back, saying,  
  
"Ahh, he got away, but I'll talk to him later. Why don't we catch a cab to the restaurant, before we miss our reservations?"  
  
"Alright, but we better go quick. Its 6:50 and our reservations are for 7:00." she replies, hailing a cab.  
  
Ross wasted to time in getting back to his apartment, where he wasn't surprised to find Phoebe.  
  
"Plan backfired! Joey mad! Must go!" he pants.  
  
"What? What happened, Ross?" she asks.  
  
"They-thought I was familiar-Joey took off hat-saw it was me-I ran away, Joey chased me. Rachel probably hates me now, too.," he says, plopping down on the couch.  
  
"Oh, Ross, it's Ok. We tried our best, maybe they really do belong together," Phoebe soothes. She honestly didn't believe that Rachel and Joey should be together, but she was thinking that maybe she and Ross would work out.  
  
"I know we tried hard, but not hard enough. I still don't have Rachel, and you still don't have Joey," whines Ross.  
  
"Well, maybe that's Ok," says Pheebs, deciding to make her move. She and Ross had been spending tons of time together, having a blast, and got along really great. Maybe, she thought, they could work as a couple. Phoebe puts her arms around Ross, as a comforting action, or at least, he thinks so, and after a short hug, she kisses Ross.  
  
"Whoa, what was that?" asks a bewildered Ross.  
  
"I don't know, we've just been spending so much time together lately, and I just thought."  
  
Ross cuts her off and says,  
  
"I know we've been spending lots of time together, but don't we both want other people?"  
  
"Well yeah, at the beginning, but maybe, maybe we're supposed to be together, and maybe Rachel and Joey are supposed to be together."  
  
"Maybe." says Ross, shrugging of the issue for now, and kisses Phoebe again.  
  
The next morning, Monica wakes up with huge dark circles under her eyes.  
  
"Ugh, I look terrible!" she complains.  
  
"Well that's what happens when *certain* people don't go to bed when they are told!" gloats Chandler.  
  
"Shut up, I'm not eight years old!"  
  
Exiting her bedroom, Monica reclines back on the couch, picking up her baby name list.  
  
"Monica, would you give it a rest? You have a whole 8 months and 3 weeks to pick a name, just enjoy being pregnant for now." says Chandler.  
  
"Enjoy being pregnant? Oh yeah, I don't know what I'll enjoy more, throwing up every morning, or having huge swollen boobs."  
  
"I don't know about you, but I'm thinking the huge boobs are kind of a plus."  
  
Monica kicks Chandler's leg, and puts down the list.  
  
"Fine. But when I am 3 months pregnant, I'm getting out the list!"  
  
"You really need 6 months to pick out a name? It's just a name.(Seeing the look on Mon's face, he quickly adds.) Ok, three months it is," and he quickly runs to the bathroom, before Monica can reply.  
  
Suddenly feeling the urge to throw up, Monica races to the bathroom and kicks Chandler out. She vomits in the toilet, and yells out,  
  
"You're right, I'm really enjoying this!"  
  
Rachel and Joey had had a great anniversary, you know, after the Ross incident. Joey refused to talk about it with Rachel, for fear of losing her to Ross. Joey figured Ross had done it because he still loved Rachel, but he didn't dare tell that to Rachel. Rachel herself hadn't really thought of it much, but made a mental note to go talk to Ross about the incident one of these days. With all the confusion and everything the previous night, Joey hadn't proposed to Rachel. He was planning on doing it soon, though, maybe right away. Deciding it was now or never, Joey pulls Rachel into the 'TV area' and bends down on one knee.  
  
"Rachel, I love you so much. I have spent my happiest days with you, and I want you to spend all your happy days with me. I never knew that you and I would end up together, but now it seems like the only right answer. Rachel Green, will you marry me?" he proposes.  
  
"Oh Joey."  
  
Ha, ha, another great cliffhanger by Carrina. So that's it for chapter 3, I hope you liked it, I did, so review and tell me what you think, I'm really curious to know, so make sure you do, Ok? Ok good, thank you! Seriously, I really appreciate feedback, so yeah. The next chapter will be up soon, no more than a week. Bye now! 


	4. Chapter 4: Issues

The world can be happy again, I have posted the next chapter. Hee, hee. Okey dokey, this is chapter 4 I think...might be 5. I decided to not have a Ross/Phoebe thing cuz it's yucky. On with the story!!! :-)  
  
(Joey has just proposed to Rachel)  
  
"Oh, Joey!! This is so wonderful, oh you want to marry me! How sweet. My answer...is...um.." she trails off.  
  
"Yes?" says Joey, hopefully.  
  
"I'm so sorry, Joey. My answer isn't no, but I just can't say yes quite yet...I need to sort out some issues." she says.  
  
Joey looks really upset, so she quickly hugs him and adds,  
  
"There's pretty much an 90% chance that I will say yes."  
  
Rachel, feeling guilty for hurting Joey's feelings, quickly leaves the apartment, planning on sorting out her issues right away. Really, she only had one issue, and that was Ross. She just couldn't get it out of her head how he had tried to ruin her anniversary. Sure, it was a terrible thing to do, but why did he do it? She had to find out, and she had to find out now. Rachel soon arrived at Ross' apartment, and knocked on the door. Ross opens it a few seconds later, and seeing her, he says,  
  
"Hi, Rachel. Please don't be mad at me."  
  
"I'm not...well, just a bit. Can I come in?" she replies.  
  
"Sure, of course," he says.  
  
Rachel enters Ross' apartment and takes a seat on his couch. She declines Ross' offer for a glass of wine, so he just sits down next to her.  
  
"What's up?" he asks.  
  
"Ross, I really need to know something. Last night, when you pretended to be the limo driver, and you took Joey and I to the strip club...why did you do it?"  
  
Ross hesitates in answering this question, he really doesn't want Rachel to know the real reason why.  
  
"Well, I really hate to say it, and I...I mean we, feel terrible about it, but...Phoebe and I were trying to break up you and Joey because...I still love you."  
  
"WHAT?!? You tried to break us up? How could you?" she yells, then softens and adds,"Oh, you still love me...that's so sweet, Ross, but I'm with Joey. He just proposed to me."  
  
"He proposed to you? What did you say?" asks Ross anxiously.  
  
"I didn't answer yet...I came over here to talk to you," admits Rachel.  
  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. He proposes and you come over here? Don't you think that's hurting his feelings? I mean, as much as I hate you two together, I don't want you to hurt him...for me."  
  
"I'm not doing anything for you. I just don't know what to say. Joey's so sweet, and I love being with him, and I know I should say yes, but then I come over here, and find out that you're still in love with me...it's too confusing. I don't know what to do, Ross."  
  
"Yes you do...just go with your gut feeling. I'll be hurt, if you go with him, but I don't want to be the one stopping true...well, love. If you want to be with him, go. If not, stay, and we'll be together."  
  
"Ok...but all I can feel in my gut is queasiness...I think I'm gonna vomit," she says, running to the bathroom.  
  
Joey couldn't believe that Rachel had just run out on him like that. He proposes marriage to a woman, and she leaves, because she needs to sort out some issues? It had to be Ross...he just knew that the guy was trying to steal back Rachel. He had to stop it. Thinking that she must have gone to his apartment, Joey rushes over there...he can't lose Rachel.  
  
Monica had since given up trying to decide on her child's name. Chandler had convinced her to wait until her first ultrasound, or atleast until they found out the gender.  
  
"Chandler, please don't get mad, but what do you think of Morgan?" asks Monica.  
  
"It's nice." he says, not really caring.  
  
"I meant for a boy," she adds.  
  
"No way. Our child is not having a bisexual name!" Chandler exclaims.  
  
"Fine...I guess I can't really blame you, with a name like 'Chandler'!" she retorts.  
  
"Hey!...Eh, I guess you're right."  
  
Joey stormed into Ross' apartment yelling,  
  
"Where's Rachel? I know she's in here!"  
  
Looking surprised, Ross answers,  
  
"Yeah, she's here. But unless you want to hold her hair while she vomits, I suggest you wait for her out here."  
  
"Fine I will."  
  
Rachel walks slowly back from the bathroom, looking slightly green.  
  
"Joey!? Why are you here?" she asks, surprised.  
  
"Why shouldn't I be? I know he's trying to steal you!" says Joey.  
  
"Calm down." soothes Rachel.  
  
"How can I? I propose to you, and you just run out, with some stupid issues, and you come to Ross'! The guy who's trying to steal you away from me, and...and...you should have said yes!" Joey retorts, kind of mad.  
  
"Ross loves me! And how dare you call my issues stupid? You know, I was about to come say yes to you, but if you really have such little trust in me, I'll just leave!" Rachel shouts, very upset.  
  
"No! Don't go...I'm sorry, Rach!" Joey calls.  
  
Rachel only half-hears him, too mad to really care. How could he think that she came over to get back together with Ross? Did he really think she was so flaky?  
  
Joey and Ross are left speechless, sitting on his couch. Suddenly, Phoebe enters.  
  
"I didn't mean to kiss you! I don't want to be a couple!" she shouts, and then leaves.  
  
"You kissed Phoebe?!?" Joey exclaims, jealous.  
  
"Um..." is all Ross can say.  
  
Okey, that's it for now. I hope this chapter is better than the last, so please review and tell me what you think!!! I'll post the next chap soon, so yeah. Think that's all I have to say...so I'll just stop typing now!! Please review!!! :-) 


	5. Chapter 5: Desicions

Hey, Ok, I'm not sure if I'm gonna make this a R/R story or a J/R story, I have no idea!! Oh, and I was wondering, how far into pregnancy to you have to be to get an ultrasound? If you know tell me and thanks! Alright I'll stop babbling and start now.  
  
"Huh...so you got over Rachel pretty quick, huh?" Joey asks, smugly.  
  
"Yeah, Ok, Phoebe kissed me. And it meant absolutely nothing, Joey." replies Ross.  
  
"Whatever. You'll be wishing it meant something when yu're at mine and Rachel's wedding!" Joey retorts.  
  
"Wedding...ha. There's no way she'll say yes now. Rachel, as far as I'm concerned, is still fair game."  
  
Joey's face turns into a sour scowl and he leaves Ross'. Arriving home, he hopes that Rachel has come to her senses, and come home, but he has no such luck, his girlfriend is no where to be found.  
  
As soon as Rachel had stormed out of Ross', she headed straight for Monica's. Ugh, those two made her sick sometimes.  
  
"Mon? It's Rachel. You home?" she asks, entering the apartment.  
  
"Yeah, I'm here. Is something wrong? Why aren't you home?" Monica asks, worriedly.  
  
"Well you see, Joey proposed to me, but I couldn't answer until I could talk to Ross about the anniversary thing. So I go over to Ross' and he tells me he still loves me, and then Joey comes in all mad an jealous claiming that Ross is stealing me, and he doesn't trust me. So I just left...and came here."  
  
"Oh, honey. I'm so sorry," soothes Monica, hugging her friend.  
  
Rachel begns to cry, so Monica sets her down on the couch, and plops down next to her.  
  
"Rach, I just have to ask. Are you going to say yes to Joey?" Monica asks.  
  
"I was. Now I don't know. He was acting like such a jerk," answers Rachel.  
  
"Yeah he was, but only because he thought he was losing you," Mon points out.  
  
Rachel wipes her eyes, and replies,  
  
"I guess you're right...I should probably say yes, but what about Ross?"  
  
"I don't know, Rach. You're just going to have to...decide."  
  
"I know, but it's so hard! I mean, I do have Emma with Ross, you know..."  
  
"Ok, I have an idea." says Monica.  
  
"What?" asks Rachel.  
  
"We'll make a list of the good points in all the relationships...not the bad ones, well because, you know..." Monica trails off, remembering the infamous "list" of Ross'.  
  
"Ok, that's better than nothing," agrees Rachel, getting a notepad and pen.  
  
The finished list looked like this.  
  
Ross -We have Emma -I've loved him more than anyone -He's loved me most of his life -He's swwet, and nice, and caring -He's a good father -Doesn't check out other women Joey -Handsome -Sweet, nice and caring -Loves me alot -Has never cheated on me -Asked me to marry him -Is on Days of Our Lives, my favourite show  
  
"Ugh, well this is no use! Both sides are completely even!" scowls Rachel.  
  
"Ok, so it was a bad idea," says Monica, "But think about it. Which is more important to you, the father of your child, or handsome."  
  
"I know, if it was that easy, I'd pick Ross in a minute."  
  
Monica rises off the couch, realizing this is going to be a long night. It was Rachel, though, so she didn't mind. In the kitchen, Monica makes Rachel a martini, and she just has ice tea...no alcohol for her.  
  
"Monica," says Rachel, sipping her drink, "I know I should probably choose Ross, but right now, I really think that I need to give Joey a chance."  
  
"Ok, if that's what you want, I think you should go for it," urges Monica.  
  
"Okay," replies Rachel, inhaling, "I will."  
  
As Rachel is preparing to leave Monica's, and tell Joey 'Yes, Joey, i will marry you!', Phoebe approaches Joey in the hallway.  
  
"Joey, you probably know by now that Ross and I tried to break up you and Rachel."  
  
"Yeah I do," he replies.  
  
"Well, there was a reason. Ever since I met you, I knew we belong together. And now, to see you with Rachel, my friend...I'm gonna do something I've wanted to do for the longest time."  
  
Joey has a puzzled look on his face as Phoebe leans in and kisses him. Just at that moment, Rachel steps into the hall and sees this. She made the wrong desicion...and rushes over to Ross'.  
  
"Rachel! No!" shouts Joey, pushing away Phoebe.  
  
Rachel is mad. At both Joey and Phoebe. How could her best friend kiss her boyfriend? How could her boyfriend kiss her best friend? Ugh, she felt so stupid for picking Joey. Oh well, she tought, atleast I'm gonna make the right decison this time. She anxiously waits in the elevator as it's ascending, anticipating what Ross will say. She gets off the elevator, and without knocking, enters Ross' apartment.  
  
"Rachel," he brethes.  
  
"Ross," she says, " You're the one I want. Not Joey, you."  
  
"Wow, oh, really? What made you change your mind?"  
  
Hesitating, Rachel answers,  
  
"Well, I thought, I'd go with Joey, you know because he proposed and all, so I go to say yes, and he's standing there, kssing Phoebe!"  
  
"What? That's terrible," says Ross.  
  
"I know. So I felt like an idiot for picking him, and I came over here...to make the right desicion. I love you, Ross."  
  
"I know...hold on a sec. I was your second choice? Not good enough to go for, but once the other guy's out of sight, I'm okay?"  
  
"No, no. It's not like that Ross! Please, don't be mad!"  
  
"Too late, I am. Rachel, I think you should go."  
  
"But...I..." she whimpers.  
  
"Don't do this, Rachel. I really think you should go. Go."  
  
Rachel takes one last forlorn look at Ross, and exits his apartment. This was easily the worst day of her life. Bursting into tears, she runs down the stairs, hating herself.  
  
And it's over! Cut! End! Yeah ok ,I think you get it. Still not sure if it'll be a joey/rachel or ross/rachel, it could still probably be either. I know this chapter was kind of short, but the next one will be better. Please review, I appreciate it! 


	6. Chapter 6: The Clouds Have Passed

I'll just start-I don't have much to say! :-)  
  
Rachel left Ross' apartment feeling dejected and alone. This morning she had had two great guys, this morning she had none. Rachel realized it was late and she should head home, but she didn't want to-she lived with Joey. Deciding she'd just sleep at Monica's, Rachel walked over, thinking she'd better talk to Joey...in the morning. Rachel slowly climbed the stairs up to Mon's apartment, and quietly opened the door.  
  
"Rach, what are you doing here?" asks Monica.  
  
"Long story, but I need a place to stay. Is that okay?" she responds.  
  
"Sure, of course you can stay here. I just vacuumed the guest room today, so, be my guest!"  
  
"Okay, Mon," Rachel says, truding into the guest room.  
  
"You know, if you want to talk about it..." says a curious Monica.  
  
"In the morning," calls a sleepy Rachel.  
  
The next morning, Rachel woke feeling refreshed and well-rested. Aw, and Monica had even made her breakfast...smiley pancakes and juice. She was so sweet.  
  
"Sleep good?" Monica asks, entering the room.  
  
"Yeah, really well," Rachel answers, digging into her food.  
  
"Rach...eat over the plate," Monica says, then adds, "Do you want to talk about it now?"  
  
"I guess. Okay, so you know that when I left last night I was going to go tell Joey that I'd marry him, right?"  
  
"Yeah," responds Monica.  
  
"So I go out into the hall, and Joey's kissing Phoebe...or Phoebe's kissing Joey, whatever. So I leave, and go to Ross' and say that I made a big mistake picking Joey, and that I wanted him, and blah, blah, blah. So guss what happens next!" she says.  
  
"What?" Mon asks.  
  
"He says no, he doesn't want to be with me, because apparently he was my *second* choice, and...and I don't know, that just made him mad. So I left there, and realized I couldn't go home to Joey, so I came to you."  
  
"Sounds like you had a rough night," Monica coaxes.  
  
"I did. I really did," replies Rachel.  
  
"In spite of the rught night you had, I think you should...no, I want you to go talk to Joey. Just find out what happened. He atleast deserves that."  
  
"Okay, you're right. Ugh, I hate it when you're right!" Rachel exclaims, getting out of bed.  
  
Rachel gets dressed in a pair of hip-hugger jeans and a black top, and goes over to Joey's. She knocks on the door, and he opens.  
  
"Rachel...hi," he greets, half-nervously.  
  
"Joey, what the heck happened last night?" she asks.  
  
"It's not what you think, I swear. Come inside, I'll explain," he replies.  
  
Rachel defiantly enters the apartment and plops down in the recliner.  
  
"Okay, so what the heck happened last night?" she asks again.  
  
"First of all, i'm sorry that it happened, at all. I swear I didn't kiss her, she kissed me. You see, I was standing in the hall, waiting for you, and Phoebe comes up to me and starts talking. So then she says, there's something I've wanted to do for the longest time, and she kisses me!" he explains.  
  
"Really? So you...didn't kiss her?" she asks.  
  
"No! OF course not, Rachel. I love you, and you're the only woman I want in my life. I want you to understand that I didn't initiate it," he says.  
  
"So you're blaming this all on Phoebe? You're saying you weren't at fault at all?"  
  
"I did nothing wrong, but be so darn handsome," he says, grinning at Rachel.  
  
"Okay then, I guess I forgive you," she says.  
  
Saying good bye to Joey, Rachel leaves his apartment and goes over to Phoebe's place to talk.  
  
"Phoebe, why?" she asks.  
  
"Because...I love him, and always have. But..." responds Phoebe.  
  
"But what?" asks Rachel.  
  
"But I've realized that you two are happy together, so I'm just gonna...um... get rid of those feelings."  
  
"Thanks, Pheebs. I totally forgive you."  
  
Rachel feels truly, genuinely happy as she goes back to Joey's apartment....with an answer to a very special questions.  
  
"Rach, you're back already?" he asks, seeing her come in.  
  
"Yeah, i have something to tell you, Joey," she says, happily.  
  
"Well, what?"  
  
"The night I saw Phoebe kissing you, i was going to tell you I'd marry you. Then i went to Ross'...let's just say things didin't work out. Anyway, last night at Monica's I realized that the person I really wanted to be with...is you. Sure, with Ross it's really comfortable and familiar and everything, but I don't think that's what I want anymore. I want to take a risk, and go for something...someone who may not be as smart, but someone who loves me, and cares for me...and who's going to marry me," breathes Rachel.  
  
"What do you mean?" he asks, stupidly.  
  
"Yes, Joey! I'll marry you!"  
  
"Really? You mean it? Like absolutely yes, no issues or anything?"  
  
"Yep! Yes, i mena."  
  
Joey hugs Rachel tight, then quickly runs to his room to get her ring. Slipping it on her finger, she says,  
  
"Oh, wow, Joey. It's so beautiful. I love it. And I love you."  
  
Joey smiles his really big Joey smile and hugs Rachel tight again. After five long minutes of hugging, Rachel and Joey excitedly go across the hall to tell everyone the good news.  
  
"Hey everyone, guess what!" Joey exclaims.  
  
Gangs like what/huh/what is it? etc.  
  
"Joey and I are engaged!" Rachel yells.  
  
"Congratulations, you guys!" say Chandler and Monica, hugging Joey and Rachel, respectively.  
  
"I'm happy for you Rach, I really am. You too, Joey," says Ross, shaking their hands.  
  
Phoebe smiles at Joey, and winks at Rachel, and breaks into a song.  
  
Joey and Rachel are getting married Maybe a baby will be carried They have rings on their fingers I am a great singer La, la, la, la, la. la  
  
END! OVER! That's it for now. This chapter was shorter than the others, but the next will be better. I hope you liked it and please review. I couldn't decide to make it a R/R or J/R but I went J/R because it started that way, might as well end that way. R/R fans don't be mad...still like my story!!! Plz review! :-) 


	7. Chapter 7: The End

This is gonna definitely be the last chapter, I just don't feel like writing anymore-I liked it for a while, but I'm not a writer. I don't even like to read!!! So yeah, okay. I'll shut up now. :-) A/N this isn't going to be much of a chapter, just well you'll see...  
  
One year later...  
  
Rachel and Joey still haven't gotten married, and Ross has since given up on trying to win her back. Monica and Chandler gave birth to a baby boy and named it Daniel. Phoebe got a dog and then got a job in Florida as a masseuse in a major salon. Ross is still loving dinosaurs. Not much else.  
  
"Hey Rach," says Monica, holding Daniel.  
  
"Hi Mon. How's Daniel?" asks Rachel.  
  
"Fine, you know, just fine. So you and Joey..." she says.  
  
"Still haven't picked a wedding date. It's like he's chickening out or something."  
  
"Nah, he wouldn't, not after all you've been through."  
  
"I guess you're right."  
  
6 months later...  
  
"We've finally picked a wedding date," announces Rachel.  
  
"Yep, it's June 17th," Joey says, proudly.  
  
"Wow, that's only like...another 6 months." says Monica.  
  
"I know, but I needed time to plan the wedding," Rachel says, plopping down.  
  
Yep, another 6 months later...  
  
It's Joey and Rachel's wedding day. They have just been pronounced man and wife, and are cutting the cake.  
  
"Joey!" exclaims Rachel, as he stuffs a piece into his mouth.  
  
"Oh! I'm sorry, would you like some?" he asks with his mouth full.  
  
"No," says Rachel, half disgusted.  
  
Phoebe has flown from Florida for the special day and is very happy for her two friends. Well, actually happy because she caught the bouquet, but who's complaining?  
  
Joey and Rachel go on their honeymoon and have a great time. Monica and Chandler enjoy life as parents, and are excitedly anticipating the birth of their second child. Ross gets a job as the president of the paleontology department in Florida, so he temporarily moves in with Phoebe. All the friends live happy lives, and the end.  
  
See, I told you it wasn't a good chapter, but I just desperatly wanted to finish it off, so um yeah don't bother reviewing, because I already know it's bad, and yeah. So thanks everyone who reviewed the earlier chapters, I really appreciate it. Bye! 


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